ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday declared Kashmiri poet Ahmad Farhad a victim of enforced disappearances and directed authorities to refer to him as a “missing person” till he safely reaches home.
Farhad, who is known for social media posts critical of Pakistan’s powerful army, went missing from his Islamabad residence on May 14, prompting his wife to accuse Pakistan’s top spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), of abducting him and filing a petition in the IHC for his recovery.
The army has not commented on the development, but it has repeatedly said in the past it does not suppress critical voices. Before his abduction, Farhad had criticized the Pakistani military in social media posts regarding unprecedented protests held in Azad and Jammu Kashmir (AJK) in May.
Farhad resurfaced on May 29 in the custody of AJK police following multiple IHC orders. He was booked in case of obstructing a public servant’s duties. On June 1, his medical check-up was conducted in a Muzaffarabad health facility, while the IHC also disposed of on June 7 the plea to recover him.
“Syed Farhad Ali Shah is an enforced disappearance missing person until he reaches his home safely,” IHC judge Mohsin Akhtar Kayani stated in a court order on Monday, highlighting that state institutions had failed to recover the poet “arrested illegally.”
The court order urged authorities to produce Farhad before a judicial magistrate to record his statement under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) after he returns and “proceed with the investigation as a result.” According to section 164 of the CrPC, any judicial magistrate can record a confessional statement regardless of jurisdiction.
It directed the heads of ISI, Military Intelligence (MI), Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) to attend the criminal justice committee’s next hearing and relay their requests and recommendations.
Justice Kayani urged IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq to exercise his administrative powers to constitute a larger bench for all the missing person cases. The court order also restrained investigation agency heads from speaking to the media following in-camera briefings relating to national security matters.
“All such cases that pertain to national security affairs be fixed for in-camera hearing and if it is an important matter, a larger bench may hear them after being briefed by heads of top investigative institutions,” the court order read. “Directives shall be issued to not report such cases in the media.”
Justice Kayani observed Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Awan and Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar needed to ensure the poet’s safe return home.
Farhad’s case has once more put a spotlight on enforced disappearances in Pakistan in which families say people picked up by security forces often disappear for years and are sometimes found dead, with no official explanation. Pakistani security agencies deny involvement in such disappearances.
A complaint filed by the police at the Dhirkot police station in Azad Kashmir and seen by Arab News said Farhad was arrested by police as he tried to leave for his ancestral village in Kashmir from Islamabad. The complaint said police stopped Farhad’s car at 07:00 a.m. near Kohala Bridge in Azad Kashmir to ask for identification, following which he misbehaved with police officers and abused them.
Farhad was subsequently arrested for interfering in the government’s affairs under section 186 of the Pakistan Penal Code, the complaint said. The provision in the law deals with intentionally hampering, misleading, jeopardizing or defeating an investigation, inquiry or prosecution.
Rights organizations have frequently accused Pakistan’s military and intelligence agencies of illegally detaining and torturing dissenters without any explanation or following due process of law. The military and intelligence agencies deny involvement in such acts.
Pakistan court declares Kashmir poet ‘missing’ till safe return home
https://arab.news/rkkzu
Pakistan court declares Kashmir poet ‘missing’ till safe return home
- Ahmed Shah Farhad disappeared from his Islamabad residence on May 14 only to resurface in custody of Azad Kashmir police weeks later
- Islamabad High Court judge observes attorney general and Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar needed to ensure the poet’s safe return home
Pakistan military says ex-PM Khan’s narrative has become ‘threat to national security’
- Military spokesperson responds to Khan’s fresh criticism of Pakistan’s powerful army chief, whom he accuses of denying him basic rights
- Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry warns army will “come bare knuckle” if Khan and his party do not desist from attacking military leadership
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said on Friday that former prime minister Imran Khan’s narrative against the armed forces has become a “national security threat,” warning him and his party to keep the army out of political statements.
Chaudhry’s criticism comes in response to Khan’s latest statement, released by his account on social media platform X on Thursday, in which he blamed Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir for “the complete collapse of the constitution and rule of law in Pakistan.”
Khan, who was ousted via a parliamentary vote in April 2022, blames the country’s powerful army for colluding with his political rivals to keep him away from power. He blames the military and the incumbent government for keeping him in solitary confinement in a central prison in Rawalpindi. Pakistan’s military and the government have strongly rejected his claims.
“It may seem to you a bit strange coming from me this because that person [Khan] and the narrative he is pushing, it has become a national security threat,” Chaudhry told reporters at a news conference.
“And that is why it is very important that we come clear, without any ambiguity, without any doubt. We need to come clear and we need to say what needs to be said,” he added.
Throughout the press conference, Chaudhry kept referring to the former prime minister as a “mentally ill” person. He played video clips of Indian news channels and Afghanistan’s social media accounts promoting Khan’s statements against the military.
“Why would they not do it? Because sitting in your country, a mindset, a mentally ill person sitting here is saying these things against the military and its leadership,” he said.
The military spokesperson warned Khan and his party against criticizing the military. He added that while the military welcomes constructive criticism, it should be kept away from political statements.
“If someone for the sake of his own self, his delusional mindset and narcissistic thinking attacks this armed forces and its leadership, then we will also come bare knuckle,” he warned.
“There should be no doubt on that.”
Khan, who remains in prison on a slew of charges that he says are politically motivated, continues to be popular among the masses.
His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has frequently led rallies to demand his release from jail, including one in May 2023 and another in November 2024 that saw clashes with law enforcement personnel.
While the former prime minister continues to remain behind bars, rallies organized by the PTI still draw thousands of people across the country and his party still enjoys a sizable following on social media platforms.
